Hawaii rattled by 5.3 earthquake

The big island of Hawaii was briefly shaken Tuesday by a magnitude 5.3 earthquake that broke beneath the seafloor 56 miles south of Hilo, the US Geological Survey says. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reports that the quake, which hit at 2:12 p.m. local time, produced a jolt that was felt in Honolulu, about 400 miles away. Hawaii residents were notified by text and email that the quake had occurred in deep water, where tsunamis can form. But the quake didn't produce any unusual wave activity. Hawaii has experienced dozens of tsunamis of differing sizes over the past two centuries, including one in 1946 that killed about 170 people.